What If The Senators Already Have Their Top-six Answers?

If you ask the average Senators fan what's still missing on their roster, the most common reply you'll hear is the need for another top-six forward. 

In fact, most fans felt that way at the start of the summer, before Brady Tkachuk was traded.

Tkachuk's spot in the top six was ultimately refilled by the acquisition of William Eklund from the San Jose Sharks. Eklund is a very nice player, but to be brutally honest, he's a downgrade on Tkachuk in every way, including offence.

Over the past five years, Tkachuk has averaged 73 points per season, while Eklund has averaged 56.

As a result, any season-end desire for another elite player in the top six has only increased.

For now, it would appear that newcomer Andre Burakovsky will get the first shot at bolstering the top six. At this point, it's not clear yet if Burakovsky will be an upgrade on some of the Senators' bottom six options, let alone the top six. The Senators are praying they get the player he was in the first half of last season, not the last half.

In truth, it may be overly ambitious to expect either player to show major improvements in Ottawa because they won't have the likes of Macklin Celebrini or Connor Bedard so frequently at their sides.

So it's not unreasonable to suggest that, on paper, the Sens' top six group could use a boost. Of course, finding that boost is far easier said than done.

Good teams tend to hang on to those types of players. If they are willing, they'll want you to sacrifice something from your existing roster.

Poor teams will want top picks and prospects, but with the draft behind us, the pressure is off. Their best returns may come by waiting until the trade deadline, when teams feel the pressure of being a legit contender.

And what about free agency? Sure, it would have been nice for Steve Staios to go shopping on July 1 to find an obvious upgrade, but at that point, you were dealing with players who had, or believed they had, a lot of options. Unless you're from here, Ottawa is rarely at the top of free agent destination lists.

Today, as NHL free agency enters its third week, it will soon be time for lowered expectations, and remaining UFAs will expand their list of potential destinations while lowering their contract demands.

As of Wednesday, the five most intriguing UFA forwards were:

- Patrick Kane
- Anthony Mantha
- Vladimir Tarasenko
- Michael Bunting
- Patrik Laine

Are there any clear solutions there?

Mantha came off the board on Wednesday, signing a two-year contract worth $9.5 million ($4.75 million in average annual value) with the New Jersey Devils. At that price, some fans wondered whether the Sens had missed the boat on a 33-goal scorer last season. But always beware of the veteran player who has a career year in a contract year.

It was around this time in 2023 that the Senators signed Tarasenko. He's a UFA again and still available, but he wouldn't be a clear upgrade at this point, so why take on the cap hit? 

According to Chris Chelios, who spoke with the player, Patrick Kane is down to two teams: Buffalo and Chicago, his hometown and his longtime NHL home.

Michael Bunting is intriguing because he could help deliver some of the edge that was lost when Tkachuk left and he has been productive in the recent past.

2021-22 TOR 63 pts
2022-23 TOR 49 pts
2023-24 CAR/PIT 55 pts
2024-25 PIT/NAS 38 pts
2025-25 NAS/DAL 33 pts

But those point totals have drifted noticeably in the last couple of seasons, and while I think he'd look good in a third-line role, the last thing the Sens need is more forwards who'd look good in a third-line role. He's also about to bounce to his sixth team in three years.

Laine is a one-dimensional player, but it's the very best dimension: goal scoring. Despite his injuries, he's probably still looking for a standard big-money contract. But if he ever gets to a stage where he'll accept a lower salary drenched with goal-scoring bonuses, he's someone you might consider. Maybe.

Right now, it looks like Steve Staios wants to see if the areas for improvement can come from within.

"We have a lot of new faces coming in, but they're good players," Shane Pinto told Sportsnet as he prepared for a golf tournament this week. "Another year in the NHL, we have more experience, and hopefully we can take another step and make the playoffs and continue to go further and further."

With so many key players at 25 and under, taking another step is more than possible. It's to be expected.

That includes Pinto (25), Jake Sanderson (24), Tim Stutzle (24), Dylan Cozens (25), William Eklund (23), Ridly Greig (23), Stephen Halliday (24), Jordan Spence (25), Tyler Kleven (24), and (maybe) Carter Yakemchuk (20).

Is it really so far-fetched to think that if Pinto or Greig, for example, moved up and became everyday top-six players, they might be capable of that next step and produce those standard top-six offensive numbers?

The locker room will also be quite different with the exit of a huge personality in Brady Tkachuk. Sometimes, when a star player leaves, other players find a new level while also providing fresh new leadership that can energize a group, not unlike the new coach bump.

That's why patience may be the right play right now.

The Senators have enough talent to prove they're ready to contend, and if they are, they'll have opportunities to add a top-six forward once the NHL's sellers are identified in the back half of the season.

Until then, the biggest improvements will have to come from the players already wearing the centurion crest. And if they improve enough, maybe they won't need to add at all.

By Steve Warne
The Hockey News

This article was first published in The Hockey News. For more Sens coverage at The Hockey News, click on one of the Sens headlines below:

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